SATURDAY'S clash against Fremantle will be an effective yardstick for Richmond coach Damien Hardwick to gauge just how far his team has progressed in the past fortnight.

The Tigers will be gunning for their third win in a row after defeating North Melbourne and the Brisbane Lions with those victories coming on the back of heavy defeats to Collingwood and Hawthorn.

Those mixed results have made Richmond's form and its rate of development as a team difficult to measure over the past month, but Hardwick is confident the picture will be much clearer after the Fremantle game.

"It's another chance for us to measure ourselves against a top four side," Hardwick said from the ME Bank Centre at Punt Road on Friday.

"Freo have been tracking along quite nicely and we've probably been disappointing against Collingwood and Hawthorn, so it's a great challenge for our guys to see how we go.

"It's another opportunity for our guys to test themselves against good players, which is what we're always about.

"It will be a daunting game, but one we're very much looking forward to.

"Confidence in a young group is immeasurable. If they get their tails up you generally don't know what's going to happen, so we're just going to go out there, play the way that we've been playing - there's a few things that we can do better obviously - but from an overall development point-of-view, it's a great stepping stone for us."

Hardwick cited ruck giant Aaron Sandilands and classy onballers Matthew Pavlich and David Mundy as the key obstacles between his team and victory with the coach also impressed with the form of Hayden Ballantyne and former Bomber Kepler Bradley.

He admitted Sandilands would probably dominate at the stoppages with his planning centred around his rucks giving him a contest and his midfield group more intent on taking their cues from the opposition ruckman.

Daniel Jackson comes into the side after serving his one-week ban for striking North's Scott Thompson and Hardwick said he had warned the midfielder to curb his aggression to avoid further suspensions in the future.

"He's just got to take himself out of those situations because it costs him, but it costs us premiership points [as well]," he said.

"Last week Simon Black has about 33 possessions and 10 or 11 clearances and if Dan Jackson plays, that doesn't happen. That could have quite easily have cost us four points. He knows how important he is to us from a playing point-of-view and also a leadership point-of-view.

"He's well aware that it can't happen any more."

The Tigers have beaten Fremantle in four of their past five matches with Freo unable to record a victory at the MCG in their past seven visits.

Although those records appear reason for optimism, Hardwick said Mark Harvey's team is now a completely different prospect to the one that struggled to travel in years past.

I would hope we free Lids up across half-back or as a radical idea let him go head to head with Pav in the midfield and try to hurt Pav going the other way. If Pav pushes forward then switch a tall defender onto him.

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WITH Nathan Foley fit, Dustin Martin firing and Trent Cotchin showing what happens when conscientiousness meets immense talent, Richmond coach Damien Hardwick could be forgiven for thinking he has the makings of the league's next superstar midfield at Tigerland.

Hardwick, though, is not getting carried away, and regards today's match against Fremantle at the MCG as the ideal chance to test his developing team against a top-four side.

The Tigers are seeking their third win in succession after victories against North Melbourne and the Brisbane Lions, but the coach acknowledged yesterday that they had stumbled against tougher opposition with poor performances against Collingwood and Hawthorn.

The trick, he said, was to close the gap between the side's best and worst efforts.

''Superstar is probably a bit far-fetched, but we think we have got the makings of a good midfield,'' Hardwick said.

''How that goes, they are obviously good players, but the measure of a player is not so much the quality of his good games, it's the quality of his bad ones and that is what we have got to iron out, the inconsistency of our midfield group. Their poor games, if we can raise those to a better level, we will be better as a whole.

''They have shown some good signs this year. In saying that, we are still outside the eight.

''We have a fair way to go in a lot of areas, those guys have still got an enormous amount of improvement in them. Where they go, hard work will dictate that.''

Jackson returns from a striking suspension with some stern words from the coach about discipline ringing in his ears.

''We've had a few chats, me and Daniel, over the course of the last two years. He's just got to take himself out of those situations because it costs Daniel, but it costs us premiership points. Last week, Simon Black had 33 and 10 or 11 clearances, if Dan Jackson plays that game that doesn't happen and it could quite easily have cost us four points,'' Hardwick said.

''He knows how important he is to us from a playing point of view but also from a leadership point of view so he is well aware it can't happen any more.''

Hardwick has great admiration for the Dockers, and regards steepling ruckman Aaron Sandilands as an all-but unstoppable force. But he also believes Richmond has gained great belief from its performances over the past fortnight.

''Confidence in a young group is immeasurable,'' Hardwick said.

''It will be a daunting game, but one we're very much looking forward to.''

According to the media this week, sounds as if Hardwick really wants to win this one. I'm not going in confident at all and we will probably lose.

It would be fantastic if we played like tigers of old and absolutely smashed them. But I'd also take a 1 point win. I'm not fussy. The boys should just back themselves in and have a crack, fight and fight to win and make a statement to all......

We all know the top 4 or 6 clubs but honestly where do this team fit in the scheme of things.

geez and here i was thinking them top 6. imo they have done really well so far this yr. what with the amount of injuries they have had yet still managing to win more than their fair share.they have not had barlow and moribito and suban has missed plenty as well. how strong would they be with these players going thru their midfield.